Chapter 4.22: Dear Diary, a Love that Will Last Forever

Dear Diary, our honeymoon stay was in a beach house in Islesbury. We decided on Islesbury because it was the one place we could think of that neither of us had ever been. We planned to stay in this location for the duration of our three-month trip, then later, Momma and Daddy were going to bring the twins to us on their way home.

I was determined this would be the best holiday Xalen ever had but it was only later I learned it was the only holiday he’d ever taken away from The Inheritance.

The skies were a bright blue and filled with some of the fluffiest clouds I’d ever seen.

There was a lovely courtyard in the middle of the house. It was so welcoming with its warm tiles and small fruit trees, I figured I could lose a lot of time reading, all snuggled into one of those inviting lounge chairs. But then, honeymoons aren’t exactly for reading, are they?

This is the view from the back of the house which sits on a cliff, overlooking the beach.

Dreamy.

Oh yes, and there is the rear of the house in all its glory. I could really get used to staying here, I think.

It was a few days before we ventured beyond our front door and into the small town that is Islesbury. As we walked down the sidewalk, hand in hand, Xalen’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“Look!” he announced, pointing at a cute little shop with a sign that read, “Alistair’s Elixirs.”

“This should be interesting!” he enthused, grabbing my hand and pulling me along.

“Wow, look at that vase,” I said after we’d gone inside.

Xalen turned from what he was looking at to take a gander at the black vase sitting precariously near the edge of a table which also had strange looking bottles of all sizes and colors on it.

“Hmmm….” he murmured as he squinted his eyes a little. “That looks like an urn from the Era Of Violence!”

“Why? I thought maybe we could buy it. Our first purchase as a married couple.”

“I don’t think we should risk it,” he said firmly.

“Why not? Afraid of who’s inside it?”

“Yes, exactly.”

“Honey, if there’s one thing I’m going to teach you, it’s how to take risks,” I said with a smile.

“I take plenty of risks, my dear.”

“This coming from the guy that thinks he’s dressed down because he’s wearing a sweater vest instead of a three-piece suit.”

“I am not the jeans wearing type,” he said with a slight smile.

“Yes, I know.”

Turning from the vase, I browsed a little more. This was such a strange shop, I’d never seen anything quite like it. Besides all the crazy bottles everywhere, there were piles and piles of thick, dusty books that looked a few hundred years old.

“What in the world is that?”

Xalen laughed a little under his breath, then said, “That is an alchemy station. I have read about the Amazing Alistair. He was said to be a hugely successful alchemist in his time. After his death, his family opened this shop, displaying this station. People come from all over the world to make potions.”

“You don’t believe in that, do you? I mean it’s just pseudoscience, right?”

Shrugging a little, he planted a kiss on my cheek. “I’m going to look at some of these books over here.”

Alistair and his elixirs. Hmph. I stared at the alchemy station for a few minutes before opening the heavy tome lying there. The book fell open to what must have been a popular page and I realized it was a potion recipe.

“Vial of Bliss,” I read out loud. I could use some more happy.

I had no idea if this was going to work or what this was supposed to look like, but I followed the recipe as best I could.

I stirred…

… I dropped in more ingredients…

… and what I created was a vial of fuchsia goop.

It had an odd glow and an even weirder smell. Steam rose out of the top and I wondered if I should cork the bottle or not.

“What have you done now?” Xalen asked with a smirk as he joined me.

“This, dear sir, is a Vial of Bliss. Drink it.”

“Thank you, but I am going to pass.”

Taking a deep sigh, I held the bottle up to my lips. The foul-smelling steam wafted up my nose and I nearly gagged. How could something so beautiful have such a vile odor? Just as I was about to take the plunge and gulp it down, Xalen pulled it away from my face and set it down nearby.

“What are you doing?” I demanded.

“I am no doubt saving your life,” he laughed as he pulled me into an embrace, looking into my eyes.

“Well,” I said with a playful huff, “I guess I’ll let you save my life… this time.”

As our mouths met and the kiss grew more and more passionate, we forgot where we were. This was something that tended to happen a great deal.

“Ahem,” the cashier coughed loudly.

Reluctantly, we stopped what we were doing and joined the cashier at the counter.

“We would like to buy the vase over there,” Xalen said.

“Okay, but we are not responsible for anything that happens.”

Xalen and I both laughed a little bit, mostly to ourselves, then he paid for the item and thanked her for her warning. Xalen gave instructions for sending the urn to The Neptune Foundation and then we were off again.

Everywhere we went, we couldn’t stop touching one another.

“Marty, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever known.”

I closed my eyes as his fingers traced invisible lines on my temple and cheek.

“I’ll give you all day to stop that,” I murmured.

As his palm rested against my chin, I reached up and caressed his hand.

“I love you, Xalen,” I whispered as my breath caught in my throat. That happened a lot to me whenever he touched me.

Back at the house, we spent a lot of time in the pool. There was this frisky side of him I’d never really seen before. Even though I playfully punched him in the arm, I was pleased he was able to relax this much. I began to realize this was the first time I hadn’t seen him wound tight as a drum.

These were the days. Lazy afternoons, skinny dipping in the pool with no one around to bother us. We did miss the twins but this time alone was something I would never forget.

“I want you to promise me something,” I said to him one day.

“And what is that?”

“I want you to take a holiday at least every couple years, even if it’s only for a week or two. You deserve a break and time to just be you.”

“I do not know what I did to deserve you,” he said.

“That’s the way I feel about you.”

It was our second to last night before the twins were joining us. We were stretched out on the bed, chatting about all the things we missed about them.

“I miss the way Rosetta sticks her tongue out when she’s concentrating,” I said.

Xalen laughed and nodded. “Oh, me, too. Or the way Holden grasps my hand with those tiny fingers when he is so excited to show me something.”

“Ah, yeah,” I said as images of Holden excitedly trying to get me to follow him filled my mind.

Xalen’s expression turned serious for a moment. Then he asked, “Have you ever thought about having more children?”

“I didn’t think about having the two we’ve got!”

Instead of getting defensive or angry as I supposed he might by my answer, he held his stomach while he laughed. After a few minutes of that, I joined him.

When we were both calm again, he pulled me into his arms. His eyes twinkled as he gazed at me.

“You’re not going to try to convince me we need more kids?” I asked.

He continued to watch me, his eyes full of the devotion and love I’d always craved but had been too afraid to dream about.

“No,” he finally said with a soft voice. “I think our family is perfect the way it is. I only wanted to know how you feel.”

“Don’t ever stop loving me.”

The corners of his mouth curved into a gentle smile and he said, “Ours is a love that will last forever. I am certain of it.”

On our last night alone, we danced until dawn, eyes locked on one another…

… We barely spoke. We didn’t need to. As I looked into his eyes, I knew everything I needed to. There was no need for words.

When Momma and Daddy arrived with the twins, they were hard-pressed to let them go. I was really glad they loved my kids so much but I couldn’t wait to hold them close. I had to keep reminding myself that my parents would be on their way soon and wouldn’t see them for a long while.

“They were little darlings!” Momma said.

“I’m so glad they weren’t any trouble,” I said with a smile. “I have so much planned for their birthday and I’m so happy you’ll be here with us to celebrate!”

Daddy shot Momma a look I couldn’t miss… it was kind of urgent looking but I had no idea what it meant. “Actually,” he said, “we can’t spend the night like we thought.”

“Why not?” I asked, my heart sinking.

Momma gave Daddy the look. The one that informed him he’d said too much. Confused, I looked from one of my parents to the other.

“What’s going on?”

Momma forced a smile and said, “Nothing, honey. We’re very anxious to get home and I’m afraid we moved our plans up. We’re going to have to leave in a couple of hours.”

“I thought we’d arranged for you to spend the night and to be here for the twins special day?”

“I’m sorry, sweetie,” Momma said. I could have sworn she was fighting back tears.

My pulse quickened and my cheeks burned. “What’s going on?”

Daddy started to say something, but Momma cut him off. “Really, it’s nothing, Marty. We’ve been away from home for a long time and we’re homesick.”

“That seems kind of lame – ”

She interrupted me before I barely had the sentence out. ” – Please don’t worry about this. It’s silly. We just want to go home.”

“Perhaps we could celebrate the twins’ birthday now then,” Xalen suggested.

“Now?” I stammered. Seeing the relieved look on my parent’s faces, I gave in. “Sure, okay.”

We moved into the dining room. I felt so let down but I tried not to show it. There was something going on but obviously, they didn’t want me to know. Never had I felt like such an outsider in my own family before.

First, Holden had his birthday.

Only mere seconds later, Rosetta had hers.

My toddlers were now children. We all hugged them and told them what wonderful kids they were. In the back of my mind, though, I still had that little voice telling me something was really wrong.

Wow, this foreboding scares me. Also because I read the title of the next chapter. Ouch…It may hurt us. Xalen and Marty are supposed to last f o r e v er, right? But this kind of sentences always scares me because in stories they usually mean the opposite. I can’t shake off the bad feeling.
But what did you say about the children? Hm…the one about Rosetta’s resting bitch face, maybe you were right, but I’m not sure if Holden seems lost. They are pretty much like normal TS3 children. I found that brows make quite a difference,though, maybe it could help then.
I only wish all the best for Xalen and Marty, but I will say it again. I’m worried. And also what do Blue and Matt hide from us? Kymber, what are you going to do? ;'(

LOL Oh, Jowita, thank you. 🙂 There are things coming up, for sure. One thing in particular, I will tell you, is not good. But try not to worry too much. Xalen and Marty have things to work out that they didn’t even know would be problems. You will see. <3

Yes, I've tried all sorts of eyebrows on them. You know, these were the most decent pics I could get of them, so you aren't really seeing the resting bitch face or terrified expressions in these two pics. lol I'll maybe send you the ones I'm talking about; you might have a laugh.

Ackkk! This was supposed be a sweet honeymoon chapter and it was . . . for a few minutes, then Blue and Matt have a secret that is taking them back home. 🙄 What could it be? The urn worries me too. The sound of forever worries me. On a more positive note, the kids are adorable. ❤️

Thank you so much, Audrey <3 I think overall, their honeymoon has been a wonderful experience. That thing with Blue and Matt, though, is hanging over them. Hopefully, they can just enjoy the rest of their trip with the kids.

It’s so nice to see them enjoying their honeymoon. It brings me memories of how a new love feels, how the world just disappears! sigh I, too, am a bit anxious about that vase! I’m glad it got sent ahead, as I am sure it will turn out to be something that will have to be dealt with by the Inheritance. And now we wait to see what’s going on with Marty’s parents. At least they got to see the twins grow up to childhood, and what a cute pair they are! Thank you for a lovely chapter, Kymber! And I will be anxiously awaiting news from Blue about what’s happening back on the island! It was not nice of her to leave Marty in the dark, but all your readers are stuck there, too – right?? =( I can’t wait till next Saturday!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaw, Marty and Xalen are adorable. Just, completely adorable and so sweet to see them just being loveable and frisky and in love…
And then you dropped the ending on us aaaaah! It’s such a typical parent thing as well – all like:
Parent: *looks extremely worried* “Don’t worry!”
Kid: “Uh, but now I’m worried.”
Parent: “Yeah, but like, don’t.” *WORRIED LOOK INTENSIFIES*
I’m worried it might be something about Leo or something – because he is getting older :/ In my Sims game, quite often the grandparents die around the teen years but depending on how old Marty was when she had the twins it could be near the end for poor old Leo or his wife 🙁 Well, now I’ll be speculating a lot…
Anyway, this was just lovely and great as always and needless to say, I can’t wait for the next one!

Also forgot to mention that I loved Marty’s little quip about Xalen’s thinking he’s dressed down in his cute sweater vest. Okay, so the cute part is my interpretation – he’s cute, m’kay.
And the kids are lovely! I forgot that, too!

Thank you so much, Louise! 🙂 I think that whole “don’t worry” bit is a universal parent thing. hahaha I love how you wrote that out, though, because it’s so funny and so true.

Leo is a good guess since he and Leela are really up there in age. Actually, Leela is a little older than Leo but not by too much.

I turn my aging off and on so often because I’m not ready for the transitions yet, I couldn’t tell you when anyone was supposed to die in real sim time. It all started back when I needed Liev and Memphis to visit Leo. During that chapter, Liev aged up to elder and IMMEDIATELY died! Like right after! LOL So, I turned aging off because every time I tried to redo it, it happened again. Anyway, it was off for so long, toward the end of gen 2, I realized Leo never aged to Adult and smacked myself in the head because I’d forgotten to turn it back on. It’s been a mess like that ever since. lol

Such a parent thing to do! I’m not one myself but it’s my parents in a nutshell 😛

Yeah :/ could be something else of course, but that’s my guess. Which would be really sad…

I’ve played a lot of legacies where I didn’t care as much for the characters so I let it all run its course – so I know if you have your founder marry right away the kids will go to school by the first winter (with Seasons installed, of course) and then the grandparents tend to die around the time their grandparents are teens 😛 But that’s probably not the case in your game, then!
It sounds like that was an error though, with Liev dying immediately :O on normal lifespan they generally can’t die before they’re (I think) 94 days old or so! Unless there are accidents, of course.
Ha, ha, that’s crazy, though I understand why you play with ageing off. These days, I don’t even play the game, to be honest – I mostly stage. The plan was to play the AMVS characters but I’m just not feeling it lately.

That’s good to know about the lifespans and what normally occurs. I bet you’re right about Liev that it was some kind of glitch because I’ve never, ever had that happen with any other sim. Seriously, he aged up and grimmie showed up seconds later. LOL

I do play them as a game because I like to see if anything happens that I can use.

I would have been more insistent. They shouldn’t get off that easy. It was obvious one of them wanted to share. I guess we’ll have to see. I question Xalen’s decision to buy that vase after what he said. It doesn’t make sense. The plot thickens…

Thank you so much, Jolie 🙂 I would have been more insistent with my parents, too, tbh. You’re right that if Blue hadn’t stopped him, Matt probably would have told them everything. I think she doesn’t want to spoil their trip, but withholding what she is might backfire on her.

I am going to mention why Xalen bought the vase in the future, but since I don’t know exactly when that will happen, I will just mention that he is afraid someone else might use it for the wrong reasons, or that someone else might not know anything about it and get hurt. So, he had it sent to the Neptune Foundation so they can safely (ahem… “safely”) study it. lol

Thank you so much, Violincat. 🙂 I hope not, too. You might not find out next week, but definitely the week after. It just depends on how much I can do in the next chapter. 🙂 I’m so glad you like the kids. Marty thinks her family is pretty awesome, too.

This was so, so sweet. Marty and Xalen make a great couple, and the children are cute as ever. I wonder what which parent they’ll take after more. I really hope that whatever bad thing is happening back at home isn’t as terrible as it seems, but… Please let Blue and Matt and the rest of the family be alright :O

Thank you so much, Raymonnd. 🙂 I think they make a really great couple, too. Marty’s story started out kind of rough where if it could go wrong, it did. But now, things are falling into place and I think she has a pretty nice family. 🙂

This chapter started off so sweet and romantic -I agree with Marty, it was nice to see Xalen relax- but then things became a little ominous. The way Xalen said ‘a love that will last forever’, forgive me for being cynical, sounded like an omen. Hopefully nothing too terrible happens to them, they truly are happy together.
And what is going on with Blue and Matthew? Whatever it is, I feel like maybe they should have told Marty, because it does seem important…
Even though I’m worried now, lovely chapter as always 🙂

Thank you, Lila. 🙂 An omen! Oh dear! 😀 I can totally see why you think that, though. Let’s hope it wasn’t. I do really like Xalen and Marty together. <3 I do agree with you that it would have been better if Blue and Matt had just told them the truth about what was going on. At least they'd know then if they should worry or not. Matt did want to tell her, so this rests on Blue.

I’m so sorry I’m so late to comment! I kept trying to read since yesterday and I always got interrupted..! 🙁
Xalen and Marty’s honeymoon was so perfect! <3 And I love how Xalen just adores his wife, it's so inspiring actually. I'm also certain that their love is forever! <3
But the last part has me really worried! 😦 What are Blue and Matt hiding? Is it Leo? Is he sick…or worse? 😢
Despite of the worrisome part, this was such a sweet and chapter! But now I'm dreading to read the next one (but I will)! <3

No worries <3 Better late then never, they say. haha 😀 Xalen is so crazy for Marty even in game. Wherever she is, he's always finding her. It's really sweet. I'm pretty certain, too, about their love.

That's a good question and guess about Leo. thing is, the next chapter is a little different and focused on their time with the kids. So, I think it will be the chapter after where you find out. I'm sorry for the wait.

Will we get to see what’s with the vase? 😀
The honeymoon seemed lovely, and they are sooo in love, how sweet. I was hoping nothing would spoil their happiness but now I’m super worried about her family… Having to go home sooner than anticipated must mean something bad has happened! :c

Marty and Xalen are too much. They really make my heart ache. And I thought Blue and Matt were cute, but these two take the cake. The twins also came out so well. They definitely are starting to take on some Xalen features now! However, I’m really concerned about the ending. I fear that something is wrong with Leo! D: I don’t think I can take it, not after all the hard work that went into healing him. Mango will forever be my hero!

Thank you so much, Rosie. 🙂 I agree it would be really hard to say goodbye to Leo. I have always had a special place in my heart for him. The good thing is, if he died, it would be old age instead of an illness that took him. Still, it would be hard. :'( Mango really came through when it was needed most. <3 <3

Marty and Xalen are so great together. I'm so glad you love them like I do. Wait until you see the twins grown up! OMG, I can't wait till you see! 😀

They did have a sweet honeymoon, and it’s great that Marty reminds Xalen that he needs to take a vacation every now and then. Working too much will burn him out.

The first thing I thought Blue and Matthew may be keeping a secret about was something bad happened to Leo. D: My mind went there because he must be getting older by now, but I hope it doesn’t have to do with him and there’s nothing to worry about, like Blue said. D:

Are Holden and Rosetta’s facial features identical? They look so alike!

Hi, Heather! 🙂 That’s a good question about Rosetta and Holden. They do look very similar, I think. And as I was playing the game, in certain light, Rosetta’s hair is really super red! It surprised me. lol

You’re right about working too much without taking any breaks. I think Marty is good for Xalen in much the same way he is good for her.

You’re right, Leo is getting a lot older. Sadly, the issue won’t be in tomorrow’s chapter, but the chapter after.

About the Author

Hi, my name is Kymber but you may know me by my pseudonym, Rosemary Castevet. I’m an author, simmer, Registered Nurse, Judy Garland devotee, and horror buff. Did I mention I’m currently owned by Cesare the cat? On top of all of that, I’m a redheaded INFJ who is also a vegan. I’m glad you’re here! Grab a comfy chair and settle in for a fun read.